"Well, dear sir, I believe you should see our little trade as a potential for you to gain 2 gold and 50 silver, instead those miserably, pessimistic, not to mention a tad bit rude perspective of yours that view the *ehm* generous me as a daylight robber."

"Of course, little miss would be correct, if of course, somehow that flowery-sweet talking were worth half-price discount of my already generous service of comforting the down-trodden and weary traveler. I'm not meant to be rude, but the slander of half-price discount is simply insult to my craft and my family."

*twitch*

"Fine you Ox-faced brute! Here the deal, me and my party is the only customer that would come to your sorry excuse Inn for the rest of the day. This is a peasant district you oaf! 5 gold for a week is not what I call a reasonable price!"

"Two can play that game, missy! Me inn is the only respectable inn 'ere, little missy should feel free to use other inn in this district, but don't cry to those useless guard when little missy found you and your party belonging stolen under your nose! Fer measly 2 gold and 50 silvers, I can give you only 1 rooms!"

"Fine! But I want free breakfasts and three additional bed for that room for the rest of two weeks!"

"Two weeks? Bah! I can get you ten days at the most and breakfast will be stale bread, nothing more!"

"But you will give me the larger room!"

"Add 20 silvers to the table, lass!"

"Done! However you, 'dear sir', will give a decent breakfast!"

"Barely-decent breakfast."

"Deal!"

"Deal!"

***

"Wow... that's... I don't know..? Intense??" Said Evel still shocked after the what he could only call an epic battle? Well, more like an epic haggling, between Chiel and the innkeeper. Mia gave him a knowing wry smile, so it seems that her friend behavior were no news to her.

"Good haggling lass, tho' you still lack some refinement 'ere and there, nothin' that experiences can't fix."

"Okay, please sign the haggling report, name here, initial here, signature here, what did I lack?"

"Well for starter, you didn't specify kind of bed that I would give to you, If I were no-good bastard, I could give you a child-sized bed, or worse bedbug-filled bed. Same with breakfast."

"Aaargh!! The learning committee will slash my score! Goodbye blue band, *sniff*, I'd miss you."

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"Haha!! That's experience lass! My mentor in tha' guild call it experience is the best teacher ever existed! Tho' it also the most expensive." Say the innkeeper chuckled.

"Sigh, there's no use to cry for spilt milk, thanks sir Al..fred Green?"

"Call me Al."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Chiel, this is Mia and Evel, my party-mate. There is one more, a swordman, Leon, he'll come later."

"Good to know you children, have a nice stay."

***

"Okay, okay! What-just-happened?" Ask Evel glaring with curiosity at Chiel as three of them walking up the stairs.

"Nothing much, we're haggling." Said Chiel nonchalantly.

"That's not what I meant!"

"What he meant is why you suddenly become friendly with the innkeeper that you called Ox-face, before, Chiel." Said Mia with a knowing smile.

"Ah, I thought that were obvious?"

"It's NOT!" Harrumphed Evel.

"Well, you know, hmm, how should I explain it.. Oh I know! Church have test for you to go up rank, right? Or adventurer must complete quest before promoted right?"

"Yes, that is true.."

"That's what exactly what we have in merchant guild, but instead with a bloody battle like adventurer-type kind of quest or find your true self like church kind of quest, we have haggling, well more than haggling, we have how much profit that we generated compared to our capital, how fast we generate it, how good we assess a risk, how we react to opportunity and other kind merchant-related things. At the end of the year, all of our achievement were assessed by the learning committee before it's decided whether we'll go up a rank or not. That's why all the merchant know that no one means what they say in haggling like that, because that we all do if we want to go up the rank."

"I never knew that."

"Well, it's not really a secret, but no one spoke about that openly either."

"Enough of that, Chiel, Evel. Now let us rest, we have a rough day ahead of us."